A Meeting of Spirits
by Argent1
Summary: A confrontation between father and son, Maedhros and Feanor in the Halls of Mandos after being driven mad by their Oath.


Disclaimer: It all belongs to Tolkien. I just borrow them. 

Argent.

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**Note: **In my opinion, by the end of their lives, most of the Feanorians, specially Maedhros, were mad by the time they got to Mandos. This is based on that opnion.

**A Meeting of Spirits**

© M.H.

     The calm of Mandos was broken this eve. For Valar, Maiar and Fea all sensed it. T'was as Mandos had foreseen t'would be. For none but him knew of the reason behind that tension. 

     Mandos silently journey to the halls of his spouse, Vaire, the Weaver, watching as the stories of Arda unfolded beneath her skillful fingers and Neinna, his sister, would read them and weep. 

      Leaning forward Mandos read the unfolding stories, waiting for his foresight to appear. Vaire stitched and weaved the retrieval of the Silmarils by Eonwe. As the tapestry took darker tones Mandos read of the attack of the last of Feanor's sons. The burning of the precious Silmarils upon their tainted touch.

     And thus the accursed oath was ended.

     He watched as the brothers' anguish was weaved and left. For he was needed in his own halls to receive Maedhros who fell and was consumed by fire by his own will and madness as was weaved into the stories of Arda as Mandos left Vaire's Halls. 

     Mandos gazed into the fevered eyes of Maedhros the Tall, "Maedhros, son of Feanor." Maedhros flinched as the name of the spirit of Fire was uttered. "You have arrived into my halls, The Halls of Mandos, to await rebirth and the coming of the end. Do you understand?"

     The fevered look cleared s lightly as the Eldar hissed, "It burns! I throw myself to fire but yet it still burns me! Accursed jewel!"

     Mandos said calmly, "To burn the pain caused by something as pure as the jewels is no simple task. Lava would not compare, Maedhros, son of Feanor, to the pain of the silmaril's touch upon tainted souls."

     Maedhros turned away from him, "Utter not his name! Utter it not! Nor that of his jewels!"

     Mandos bowed his head in agreement for now. "We shall meet again, Maedhros the Tall. Your kinsmen and brothers are present in these halls."

     Maedhros' response was a quiet mutter, "Kinsmen. My cousin should have slain me!..Ai! By Iluvatar it burns!... Manwe should not have aided a son of Feanor even for the sake of Fingon the Valiant!"

     And thus the halls grew more tense as Maedhros the Tall was admitted into the Halls of Mandos. For he the roamed restlessly; the pain and madness which had gripped him his only companions as he roamed. A moment screaming and yelling in anguish and anger. Others muttering and sobbing, all the while the words, "It burns!" and "Oath" and "Accursed Jewel" were oft heard. And none dared approached the spirit maddened by its suffering. Not even his brothers and kinsmen. 

     However, T'was one moment, in the halls, when it happened that Maedhros the Tall, in his restless roaming approached unawares the cavern by which the fea of the Eldar he least wanted to meet had taken residence.

     The fear driving the somber halls had finally occurred. The Fea of Feanor met that of Maedhros the Tall, first born son of Feanor, son of Finwe.

     Maedhros had stopped his mad mutterings at feeling a fiery gaze upon himself to meet the eyes of Feanor which seemed to glow more terribly that the Silmaril that had burnt him.

     "Father." Maedhros willed himself to move but that gaze held him as the spirit of fire approached him with purposeful strides.

     "Maedhros. My first born. The reason behind the downfall of the Noldor. Betrayer to his father." Feanor narrowed his eyes, "Weakling!"

     Maedhros towered his father in size, but Feanor towered all in force of spirit. But a spirit driven into madness might not care, and one with nothing to lose is not too easily intimidated. 

     "T'was you who brought the downfall! The Kinslayings! The hateful oath! Dare not blame the downfall of the Noldor on me!"

     "You give the crown of the Noldor to the offspring of Indis!" Feanor all but spat the name, "A crown I pass to you! Were you not a weakling you would have used it and retrieved My Jewels. And fulfilled your oath."

     And Maedhros cried, "My cousin saved a son of Feanor! His kind have more honor and right to the crown of Finwe! For we would not have saved him! Even my own brothers thought it impossible to even try and tried naught to save me! Me! Their king and brother!"

     "Would I that he left you there!" Feanor screamed at him, "What would you know of honor?!"

     Maedhros was about to agree when Feanor's tirade continued, "You lose a jewel to the skies! You lose a jewel to Maglor! Ever would I curse his weakness! And the one you held you toss into earth and fire! What of your Oath!? I died keeping it! You burnt breaking it! Ever had you opposed me when you could!"

     Then Maedhros laughed, and wept. And while he laughed and wept he screamed, "Broke it! Broken the oath! Aye! I did! I did when I attacked Doriath and slew Dior! I did when I slew half of Sirion and condemned the other half to burning! You are right Father! I broke it when I attacked the Herald of Manwe himself! When I challenged Thingol! Elwing! Morgoth the Black Foe himself! Aye! I broke you oath father! Indeed!"

     Then all fell silent as Feanor slapped him, "You wreck havoc upon all but you fail your oath."

     Maedhros advanced towards his father so that they were almost touching and Feanor's spirit burnt him but Maedhros cared not having lived in fire and its memory and still being burnt by the memory of the Silmaril. "I held it in my hand and it burned! It burns me still! I feel it sear my very soul! Seared flesh and bone burnt once already in the fires of Arda's anger! Speak not to me of oaths unfulfilled when I still burn of my fulfilling them! Dare you not, Father! Dare you not!"

     And Feanor's spirit raged and to Maedhros it seemed to grow in Feanor's anger. The fire from Feanor's eyes was neigh impossible to endure. "Silence! You who takes a coward's way to escape the pain by taking your own life only to have it returned 7 fold! A weakling would not command me to do naught! You are no son to the spirit of Fire! And no worthy heir to the Crown of Finwe, my father! Henceforth six sons have I! And if I am to see Maglor then might they be five!"

     Maedhros' voice rose as he cried, "Aye, why not forsake your blood?! You have forsaken your very kind and kin and even the Valar!" he made to leave when he turned to Feanor with a terrible smile upon his face, "The Silmarils were never truly yours. For their value came from their light. And that is the gift of Yavanna and her making of the trees!" Maedhros started laughing, "All this for jewels not even yours by right!"

    Maedhros, though laughing, did not miss the cruel look upon Feanor's face nor his hissed words, "Aye. She made the light of the Trees. But mark this. T'is my jewels who hold the last of that light. The light She could not bring back. And even your mighty Valar might not break my jewels to get to it! None but me can! And the world's end would be marked by MY breaking of the jewels." Feanor fixed his gaze upon Maedhros, and Maedhros' laughter died. For never had he seen a look so fey. And his father's words chilled him. For he would never break the jewels, Maedhros knew. 

     "Father… what... what do you plan?" Maedhros whispered fearfully.

     Feanor kept his gaze, "Never shall I yield to another as my sons have. Never will I bow to another and never shall I be told what to do in my craft. If I wish to break my greatest creations for the sake of the Valar's greatest creations then it will be by my will alone. Not by theirs and certainly not yours. By Iluvatar himself…"

     "Nay father! No more oaths!" Maedhros backed from Feanor in panic.

     Feanor paid him no heed, "By Iluvatar himself I swear I shall not break them till I wish it." and his smile was terrible and his eyes shone with a fever to match that of Maedhros'.

     Maedhros, eyes wide and disbelieving, gave a keening wail and backing from his father's terrible gaze and he fled. Wailing and uttering for his mind, still burning with the memory of the Silmaril in his grip, could not fathom another oath.

     Meanwhile, in Feanor's cavern the Eldar stood in his place as he watched Maedhros' retreating form, and his voice holding a cruel madness said meaningfully, "By Iluvatar I have sworn it! And by Iluvatar I shall not break it!"

     And thus the halls were filled with the echo of Feanor's words and the echoes of Maedhros' tormented cries.

FIN.


End file.
